Chapter Text
“MIKEY!”
The shout echoed across the open desert, annoyance biting into every syllable. Leonardo rolled his right shoulder, adjusting the weight of his prosthetic before raising his voice again.
“One of the cows got loose again, MIKEY!”
“Quit your bellyachin’, I’ve got it.”
Donatello answered instead, already unhooking his lasso from his waistband as he strode past. The purple-banded brother just swung the rope once, twice, muscle memory taking over, and sent it flying.
A perfect throw; straight around the cow’s neck.
One quick tug, and the animal settled.
“I could’ve handled that.” Leonardo huffed, planting a hand on his hip, lips tugging into a faint pout.
“And yet,” Donnie said lightly, glancing back with a smirk, “you yelled for someone else. Funny how that works.”
He gave Leo a quick pat on the shoulder before leading the cow back toward the barn.
“Don’t mind him, Leo.”
Raph’s warm baritone rumbled from behind the fence. “You’ve been doing good.”
“You don’t need to suck up to me, Raph.”
“Raph ain’t suckin’ up!” he snapped, dropping the hay bale from his shoulder with a heavy thud. “He’s sayin’ he’s proud of you.”
“Oh, he is so sucking up.”
Mikey’s voice chimed in, all mischief.
Leo spun, swatting blindly at the air behind him. “And you’re slacking off.”
“I was with Apple!” Mikey popped into view with a grin. “She needed some pamperin’ today.”
“You pamper her every day, bud.”
“Because she deserves it,” Mikey shot back, hands on his hips. “And you wonder why all the horses hate you…”
“They don’t hate me!” Leo sputtered.
“Right. Jupiter tolerates you.”
“Jupiter loves me! She just— shows it differently, that’s all.” Leo crossed his arms, defensive.
Donatello reappeared, casually knocking Mikey’s hat down over his eyes as he passed.
“Cows are all back. Fed them too. You’re welcome, Michael.”
“Thanks, Dee!”
Donnie adjusted his glasses, then turned toward Leonardo, expression sharpening.
“Leo, I needed to tell you something. Up north, there’ve been reports of—”
The sky flared.
A sudden burst of orange light bloomed overhead, swallowing the sky. All four of them froze, heads snapping upward.
“…What the—”
Leo didn’t get to finish before something tore through the light— fast. Too fast.
It slammed into him.
Leonardo hit the ground hard, the air punched from his lungs as the figure crashed on top of him. The glow above flickered, shrinking rapidly back into nothing.
“Leo!”
His brothers rushed forward— then paused.
“…No way,” Mikey whispered.
It was Leonardo. But… not?
Smaller. Barely more than a kid— he looked tiny—Barely clothed, ( if those bandages counted as clothing at all) and covered in injuries.
Bruised. Cut. Breathing, but only just.
The three of them stared.
What the hell were they looking at?
…
“Get him off of me!”